I decided to pick a surname that begins with a vowel, and looking through the first few generations of my family tree, I find only one, Allison.
My maternal grandfather’s mother was born Dorcas Elizabeth Allison. She was called Dollie. She was born in Marion County, Georgia, in 1890. She married Arthur Cook in 1906, when she was 15 years old. By the time my grandfather was born, in 1990, they were living on a farm in Walnut Hill, Florida.
Dollie’s father was S. John Allison. He was a farmer, born in Georgia in November 1867.
John’s parents were Francis Randolph Allison, another farmer, and Dorcas Elizabeth Woodall. The couple married in Schley County, Georgia, in 1861. By the 1870 Census, they had set up housekeeping in Marion County.
Francis’s father was Henry Leonidas Allison, born 18 June 1807 in Columbia, Georgia. He later moved to Marion County, too.
Henry L.’s father is said to be Alexander H. Allison (1789-1853). A newspaper clipping attached to Henry L.’s FamilySearch profile shows Henry applying for letters of administration for the estate of Alexander H. Allison, but it’s published in November 1836. This will require searching court records to straighten out.
Rhyme Schemes and Daydreams 